Translator: Haruto.

Volume 2:
Mia, the Saint of Benevolence.

“You’re really leaving, Alize-san?”

Anna-chan and her family have come to see Lulune and me off at the northern gate of Arcana. Wishing to see the other girls as well, I’ve decided to head to the Republic of Nysalis up north.

Anna-chan grabs the hem of my clothes with a dejected look on her face. Her father, Gailam, is clenching his teeth for some reason and trying his best to avert his eyes from us.

“Yeah, there are some people I want to see, so I’ve got to go.”

“…Are you talking about the other heroes?”

When she sees me nod, Anna-chan reluctantly pulls her hand away.

“I see… They must be very dear to you.”

“Yeah, but I promise I’ll return one day.”

“…Okay, I’ll hold you to that promise!”

I nod again to reassure her and then turn to Gailam.

“Hey, old man, you’d better don’t kick the bucket until I’m back.”

“Who are you calling an old man? But… You’d better don’t die out there either,” he says solemnly, in contrast to his usual silly demeanor.

I turn around at last, knowing that prolonging this would just make things sadder.

“Well then, bye. I look forward to seeing you all grown up and mature when I return, Anna-chan.”  

And just like that, Lulune and I take the first step of our journey. I hear a few sobs coming from behind but I don’t turn around.

“…I’m sorry, Alize-san. It’s all my fault.”

“No need to apologize, Lulune. Remember, being a traveler means learning to say goodbye as often as you say hello.”

Nevertheless, the apologetic look in Lulune’s eyes doesn’t disappear. Which is why I clap my hands loudly and, in hopes of changing the mood, I exclaim “Alright! Traveling on foot would be kind of troublesome so let’s call a buddy of mine to give us a ride!”

“Right, I’ve actually been meaning to ask you how we’re going to get there since you didn’t want us to hire a carriage,” Lulune says, tilting her head curiously.

However, instead of answering, I simply whistle as loud as I can. And a moment later, a giant Enchanted Wolf appears from the direction of the forest, producing ear-splitting thumps with each step.

“Wha—?!” Lulune’s eyes widen in shock, and she quickly tries to grab the rapier hanging from her waist, but I stop her in time and wait for Kamia to reach us.

“Did you call, Dear Master?”

“Yeah, I’m going on a little trip and I was wondering if you’d like to tag along.”

“…Master, you know I’m more than a means of transportation, right?”

“Relax, I know that. But hey, aren’t you bored spending all your time holed up in the forest?”

Kamia lets out a sigh and replies, “Well, yeah, a little, but… I have a feeling you’re just leading me by the nose.”

“You shouldn’t let your imagination play tricks on you like that. At any rate, are you coming with us?”

“Of course. Things are never dull with you around so I’d be more than happy to accompany you.”

It takes a moment for Lulune to snap out of her daze and ask me, “I-Is he… an Enchanted Wolf?”

“Yeah, that’s what he told me.”                                    

“It’s… my first time encountering one. I’ve only seen drawings of them in elven picture books.”

Confused by Lulune’s attitude, I turn to Kamia and ask, “Say, is there a chance you’re actually pretty amazing?”

“I’ve told you so multiple times, but you’ve never believed me, Master.”

Well, I’ll be damned. Kamia here is actually a big shot.

“Anyhow, please get on my back. I’ll run at full speed.”

“Huh? Wait, I told you full speed is—” Without even letting me finish my sentence, Kamia puts Lulune and me on his back and dashes off…

We only rode on him for ten minutes or so, but it was more than enough to leave us all wobbly and dizzy.  

***

I, Mia the Saint, am currently analyzing all of Lulune’s recent words and actions as I rest in my private room at the heroes’ sky castle.

“There’s no doubt… she was hiding something. That’s what my instinct as the Saint is telling me.”

Now I just need to figure out the best way to run after Lulune before the sky castle arrives at the next northern country. The problem is, I can’t let the others get wind of this. If Lulune is in fact aware of Alize-san’s whereabouts, I wish to have him all to myself.

…Well, I can’t exactly do that since Lulune already beat me to the punch, but it’s okay. He can just pat Lulune’s head with his left hand and pat mine with his right one. Adding one more to the mix would be out of the question, though. I don’t want my head-pat time to decrease.

On that note, I must draw up an excuse that’ll allow me to exit the sky castle and pursue Lulune freely.

I could, for example, announce the appearance of a new demon… No, what kind of hero would I be if I did such a thing? As heroes, we need to be careful with the things we say since our words carry a lot of weight.

Instead, I can just…  

After coming up with a brilliant idea, I sneak out of the sky castle without the other girls noticing.

***

Two days later, the other three heroes decided to check Mia the Saint’s room after she was absent from their regularly scheduled meeting.

However, the only trace left of her in that room was a single letter that read, “Ayesha-san, Akane-san, Nina-san… I’m terribly sorry, but I have an important business to attend to. It is god’s will that I embark on a journey to the west—to the land of Sapientia. How unfortunate! How truly unfortunate that I won’t be able to accompany you on your quest to find Alize-san! Nonetheless, I do not doubt for even a second that you’ll find him. I wish you the best of luck.”

Having read through the letter, the three great heroes thought the exact same thing, “Let’s go to Sapientia.”

They realized that Mia the Saint was trying to get a jump on them, which is why they resolved to find Alize before she could. Unbeknownst to them, however, Alize was not in that country. Mia was simply misdirecting them.

And as a result of these events, a new future began to take shape…

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